Beta Theta Pi - University of Kansas

3 A s first-generation college students majoring in finance, junior twins Sae-Vheon '23 and Tae-Vheon Alcorn '23 are determined to make the most of the opportunities their parents didn't have. Their mother moved to the United States from Mandeville, Jamaica, at the age of 13. Their father is from Kansas City, Missouri, and owned two self-started businesses. The couple met in high school and later raised four sons together. "Seeing how hard our parents worked instilled the same strong work ethic within us too," Tae said. Their father passed away unexpectedly in 2010, leaving their mother to support and raise four boys. Throughout the years, the Alcorn twins have learned to use their challenges, failures, and adversity as motivation to succeed. Today, the brothers balance life as student athletes, small business owners, and members of Alpha Nu Chapter of Beta Theta Pi. PROUD JAYHAWKS AND BETAS KU was always the brothers' top college choice; their older brother Stephonn attended as a member of Sigma Nu and served as student body president in 2016. "Seeing our brother find success at KU with the support of other Jayhawks highlighted how special the University was," Tae said. They were scouted by KU to run track and went through Greek recruitment while in high school. They chose Beta after meeting with Recruitment Chairmen Greg Wiedeman '20, Jon Wemhoff '20, and Jack Hane '20. "They highlighted that Beta has not only a strong history of academic success, but also leadership, involvement on campus, and community service," Tae said. The Alcorn twins also met with Reese Randall '18, a former KU football player, before accepting their bids from Beta. Sae and Tae are very appreciative of the conversations that they had with Reese as he spoke about balancing Greek life and college athletics. "The guys in the house were phenomenal," Sae added, recalling their first visits to Alpha Nu. Tae and Sae have already made great memories with the brotherhood, such as date parties and their pledge class' spring break trip to Florida in 2020. They consider Beta to be their most constructive life experience so far, thanks to a strong pledgeship program and being around brothers who want to help one another succeed. "You come into freshman year as a boy and leave as a man," Tae said. STRONG BUSINESS SKILLS The Alcorn brothers had their first taste of business ownership in high school when they ran a small e-commerce drop-shipping business that sold 10,000 clothing units worldwide. This sparked their shared interest in financial careers and proved to be good practice for their current business: The Vintage Hawks. Last spring, they decided to find vintage KU gear by searching thrift stores in the Kansas City Metropolitan area and selling it to people they knew; they figured it would be a fun way to spend time in the early weeks of the pandemic. "Little did we know that a year later, that small idea would expand into something much bigger," Sae said. The Vintage Hawks is a rapidly growing vintage small clothing business. As founders, Tae and Sae work with local partners to acquire KU (plus Chiefs and Royals) clothes from across the decades and sell them to current Jayhawks, alumni, and the greater Jayhawk community. They hosted their first pop-up shop on campus at McLain's Market on August 25, selling out more than 200 clothing items in about 30 minutes. As the brothers tell their customers and friends, the business and merchandise may look cool on Instagram, but there's also a lot of behind- the-scenes work to make it happen. So far, having widespread support from their friends and family, fraternity, and community has made it all worth it. "It means so much—beyond words," Tae said. SHARING SUCCESS Now that the NCAA allows student athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness, Tae and Sae have received a handful of sponsorship opportunities, such as social media deals with sports drink brands and a travel/backpack company. They are also trying to use their platform with The Vintage Hawks to form partnerships with fellow student athletes at KU—especially those who have less exposure and opportunities. The brothers have learned to balance many responsibilities in their college life, and they credit Alpha Nu with teaching them to grow up fast and learn time management. Their favorite tip to share with brothers, according to Sae, is: "Don't be afraid to work those early mornings and late nights; success is not supposed to be easy." When the twins graduate, they hope to continue growing The Vintage Hawks and bringing the community together with their business by placing vintage KU items back in the hands of Jayhawks. Next summer, they both will be working as investment banking summer analysts, with Sae working at Bank of America and Tae at Wells Fargo. You can connect with Tae at taevheona@gmail.com and with Sae at saevheon.alcorn@gmail.com, and you can learn more about The Vintage Hawks by following @thevintagehawks on Instagram. The Keys to Success Alcorn Twins Talk Business, Athletics, and Brotherhood

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